cold-blooded

[ kohld-bluhd-id ]

adjective

1. designating or pertaining to animals, as fishes and reptiles, whose blood temperature ranges from the freezing point upward, in accordance with the temperature of the surrounding medium; poikilothermic.
2. without emotion or feeling; dispassionate; cruel:

   a cold-blooded murder.

3. sensitive to cold.

cold-blooded

adjective

1. having or showing a lack of feeling or pity

   a cold-blooded killing

2. informal.
   particularly sensitive to cold
3. (of all animals except birds and mammals) having a body temperature that varies with that of the surroundings Technical termpoikilothermic

cold-blooded

/ kōld′blŭd′ĭd /

1. Having a body temperature that changes according to the temperature of the surroundings. Fish, amphibians, and reptiles are cold-blooded.

Derived Forms

• ˌcold-ˈbloodedly, adverb
• ˌcold-ˈbloodedness, noun

Other Words From

• cold-blooded·ly adverb
• cold-blooded·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of cold-blooded¹

First recorded in 1585–95

Example Sentences

Hochman said pursuit of death verdicts will only take place in “rare” cases, including school shootings, domestic terror attacks or the “cold-blooded assassination of a police officer.”

From Los Angeles Times

A lawyer for Kitty Menendez’s brother, Milton Andersen, called the brothers "cold-blooded" and said their "actions shattered their family and left a trail of grief that has persisted for decades."

From BBC

“You know, actually, I felt so cold-blooded. For a second, to be honest, these thoughts ran through my mind - about who lived here.”

From BBC

"Exactly 12 weeks ago this evening on this very ground,” Trump noted, “a cold-blooded assassin aimed to silence me and to silence the greatest movement, MAGA, in the history of our country,"

From Salon

One of the relatives, Steve Brisley, said it felt like the “cold-blooded brutal murders” of his family - “all three who were British citizens” - have been forgotten.

From BBC

Related Words

• barbarous
• brutal
• callous
• hardened
• inhuman
• merciless
• ruthless